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Saturday, 8 August 2015

S.C.U.B.A

It was quiet.Very quiet down there. The only sound that could be heard was, the whooshing of the breath drawn in and the gurgle of it going out. If it is a debut tryst with the deep waters, the silence can be quite disconcerting. For us, it was such a relief that we still managed to breathe with all the thoughts of ' will--i-be-the-first-one-to-die- in-first-scuba-dive-experience'. All this while holding on to the rope from the boat for dear life.

The quest for the enchanting underwater life had been fed by our delightful snorkeling experience in the Andamans, a few years back. If the surface skimming could reveal such rich under water flora and fauna, we were intrigued by what scuba diving would unleash! The colourful clown fish, starfish, corals of exquisite shades had us eager eyed in a euphoric state of being. A determination arose silently to push the envelope further with scuba diving. But it had to wait for a few years till we found an opportune trip to take us to the sea side once more.

It was after we literally took the plunge, it sank in that scuba diving was an altogether different ball game or water game, if you please. The terrified look on Hrithik Roshan's face before the dive was underplayed in the movie ZNMD. Or it might be that having Katrina Kaif as an instructor diverted the petrified mind. The time we left our resort for the waiting launch off the Bang Rak beach, the entire Koh Samui seemed to stretch out languorously after a good night's sleep. The only shutters that were up, were the all night departmental shops and the divers shops. We had stopped enroute to try out our diving gears for the right size. There are many operators here and we relied once again on Mike to connect us to the right one since his advice on travel to Koh Samui from Bangkok had stood us in good stead. On board the Easy Divers launch, we found ourselves in a motley group of different nationalities seeking the same thrill of going down. They had tested many waters whereas we were first timers.

Pulling away from the shore with anticipation spreading out like the sea, leaving the pretty white boats bobbing up and down, the towering Big Buddha receded gradually as we sped into the open waters. The Scuba diving site for the day was the Ang Thong Marine Park which was almost three hours away from the shore. Since there are quite a few dive sites around Koh Samui, there are different days of the week allotted to each of them. Each of these dive sites are popular for their own reasons. It was Ang Thong Marine Park for us, it being a Thursday. On our way, Toddy, the instructor who would be our guiding star, explained the techniques the hand signals to be used under water, the gauge to be monitored. We lapped it all up like obedient students feeling very sure that thumbs up signal ( to surface if uncomfortable) was going to be least used.
" You will hold on to each child and we will stay together, is that okay?" we nodded eagerly to his instruction.

Feeling none less than Carl Sagan splashing in and out of water in his iconic Cosmos, the first diver I ever saw ( yes, yes I am that antique), we jumped into the Gulf of Siam, off the archipelago Marine Park, with the weight belts around the waist, the oxygen tanks strapped behind, the mask on our face, the life jacket inflated. All the dreams of seamless dive, fluid and graceful piscean movement went up with that first splash. It took us a while to realize that the oxygen tanks were strapped a little off the center that had us floating in a lop sided manner. Fear had it's grip on us. And quite strongly. With arms and legs flaying in all directions in the most awkward manner, we finally managed to hold on to the rope decently. Gathering our senses and wits that had run askew, it was time to rehearse the signals and to monitor the oxygen gauge and to try the equalizer. All this under water. While our two ducklings had morphed into fish, the mother duck was sending all kinds of prayers to stay alive.

Going down, the equalizer helped the body to adjust to the pressure difference. It's a simple technique of blowing against the ears with the nose pinched, the same that we practice on flights and high altitudes. Toddy and Paul kept asking us if we were alright and it didn't take us long to figure out how important that thumbs up signal was. We surfaced many times trying to adjust sustaining under water. Toddy looked at Paul, during one such surfacing,
" I think, you and I will have to hold the children"
I was never more relieved to hand over my children into hands safer than ours.
After many trials and errors and gulping the sea water, we did manage to descend gingerly, stopping every now and then to equalize which did us a lot good. Trusting the oxygen mask,the tube,the cylinders and the mouth piece and the team, we learnt to let go.

I think that was very important. To trust and to let go. To not be burdened with anxieties and anticipations. It was important to flow with the moment and relax. Our flippers stroked the water taking us forward. Paul's gentle push guided us to the coral reef and suddenly we found friends swimming along with us. Many tawny striped little ones emerged from around a rock and hurried of as if on an errand. Almost brushing past sea urchins settled on rocks nibbling at the moss, we soaked in the tranquil sights by the eyeful. The diffused sunlight spread a soft veil all around lending the surroundings a surreal feel. The visibility was not what we had experienced in the Andamans, but swimming along the reef and rocks with marine life going about their regular life was exciting.

Time had it's own pace and before we knew, it was time to surface. All those minutes spent in learning to let go seemed such a waste when we could have utilized them to explore the world down there. It was time to turn back and head for the shore. A day spent exploring not just a part of the sea but also the self.

So would I do this again? Absolutely! Knowing well that I will yet again find it difficult to let go initially. That I managed to overcome my fear of deep water when even the deep end of a swimming pool left me in jitters is something to reckon with. Attempting such feats can send up rewarding moments such as coming across dolphins frolicking out of the blue and so close - the privilege of finding a window to a world so different from ours. We watched Toddy silently communicate to another fast approaching boat to cut the engine and drift because these lovelies were out playing and frisking around. The sight of the smooth grey graceful bodies arch out of the water followed by the glimpse of a perfect tail following close behind is what I'll remember for a long long time.

"A day spent exploring not just a part of the sea but also the self"There is an unknown and unexplored ocean within everyone . We do not explore nature. We explore ourself. The mountaineers do not win over the height of the tallest peaks but they win over the fear of death ,the limit of their endurance., the depth of their willpower and the thirst of their sousl.They discover their own self .Very well written Ilakshee.